The last and most difficult decision for married couples is divorce, which is decided upon by an increasing number of spouses in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The most common reasons are of an economic nature, and other problems are also associated with them. Is the institution of marriage dying out?
The number of divorces in Bosnia and Herzegovina is devastating. Statistics show that up to 3,000 couples divorce in our country every year. What are the reasons that make them take off the wedding ring?
The decision to divorce is most often made by couples in their forties, according to data from the Agency for Statistics of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Speaking from his own years of experience, lawyer Remzija Suljić points out that even among young people, the institution of marriage is less and less popular. In the past, divorce, he says, was a shameful act, writes BHRT.
“Having in mind the practice of certain countries where the divorce of spouses is a rather lengthy process, they are given two or three years to think carefully and arrange the relationship, in our country it goes very quickly and that is why the procedure is more and more common,” says Suljić.
Experts in the field of psychology warn that children are the biggest losers during divorce.
“It may happen that one of the parents cannot distinguish the difference between the role of a partner and a parent. In this way, it alienates the child from the parents with whom he no longer lives. In this sense, it is important how the parents deal with these consequences, which has an influence on how the child himself will react,” explains psychologist Una Halilagić.
In times when divorces are becoming more frequent and almost normal, Tomislav and Jelena Šantić from Bihać will celebrate 44 years of marriage next month. During all those years, they also went through difficult periods. They forgave each other a lot, knew how to keep quiet when they needed to, so that’s the charm of their relationship.
“We were sustained by love, faith, work… We created everything these years. There were difficulties, you can’t say that it was beautiful and wonderful, but everything can be endured when two people know how to come to an agreement”, says Jelena Šantić.
“People don’t know what a family is, that’s a big problem. If you don’t create it, you can’t even plan anything. They don’t have faith in themselves, that sustains us all, who believes in life, marriage, children…”, says her husband Tomislav.
Decades of happy marriage passed in the blink of an eye. Both of them still remember their first outings on the banks of the Una river, and the greatest treasure they have acquired in life, they say, is their three sons.
